#SAR NEWS: #Chile #Rescue Shaft Reaches 33 Miners Trapped For Months

#SAR NEWS: #Rescue shaft drill has pierced the roof of underground San Jose #mine in #Chile where 33 men have been trapped since August 5

Chilean Mine Rescue Joy
Photo credit: news.com.au

The special drill broke through to their cavern in the collapsed Copper and Gold mine more than 2,000 feet underground, creating a shaft just wide enough for a specially designed escape capsule to pass through. Siren's sounded throughout "Camp Hope," confirming the breakthrough. Rescuers plan to start pulling the men out one by one as early as Tuesday.

Update:  The miners have decided they will not be transported to regional hospital until all the miners have reached safety above ground.

The plan: The miners will be initially examined at a field hospital where they can briefly reunited with up to three close relatives. Then, they'll be flown by helicopter in small groups to the regional hospital in Copiapo, were a wing of 33 fresh beds await to care for them for no fewer than 48 hours. After their physical and mental health is examined will they be allowed to go home.

The "Plan B" drill won a three-way race against two other drills to carve a hole wide enough for an escape capsule to pull the miners out one by one.

While "Plan A" and "Plan C" stalled after repeatedly veering off course, the "Plan B" drill reached the miners at a point 2,047 feet (624 meters) below the surface after pushing through the final 128 feet (39 meters) overnight.

If today's close video examination persuades engineers that the shaft is smooth, strong and uniform enough to let the capsule pass without significant obstacles, then rescuers plan to start pulling the men out one by one as early as Tuesday.


 Sixty-six days after their gold and copper mine collapsed above them a drill broke through to their underground cavern.


But now comes a difficult judgment call: The rescue team must decide whether it's more risky to pull the miners through unreinforced rock, or to insert tons of heavy steel pipe into the curved shaft to protect the miners on their way up.

Steel pipe would prevent stones from falling and potentially jamming the capsule, but it wouldn't save a miner if the unstable mine suffers another major collapse, and might itself provoke a disastrous setback, Mining Minister Laurence Golborne said.

"You would have to put though a 600-meter hole a lot of pipes that weigh more than 150 tons," he warned. "And this structure can be set in a position that also could block the movement of the Phoenix (escape capsule). It's not an decision easy to make."